Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed near the village of Hrabove in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew. Two thirds of those on board were Dutch nationals.
An international investigation led by the Netherlands later concluded that the aircraft was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile fired from territory controlled by pro-Russian separatists, using a launcher brought from Russia and returned afterwards.
Access to the crash site was restricted for days, complicating the recovery of remains and wreckage. The disaster hardened European Union sanctions policy towards Moscow.
